Sports round-up

Cricket: Former India fast bowler Shanthakumaran Sreesanth has been banned for life on spot-fixing charges, the country’s cricket board (BCCI) said yesterday. Sreesanth and two other players were arrested in May by Delhi police on suspicion of spot-fixing in the cash-rich Indian Premier League Twenty20 tournament.

Golf: Tiger Woods was a frustrated figure at the BMW Champion-ship on Thursday, despite draining a 22-foot birdie putt on his final hole to end the opening round just three shots off the lead. The world no.1 missed three putts from inside five feet and failed to birdie any of the three par-fives as he carded a five-under-par 66. “Well, I certainly wasted a lot of shots out there today,” a disgruntled Woods said after finishing three strokes behind pacesetting Brandt Snedeker. “I missed three short ones and played the par-fives stupendously.”

Boxing: This weekend’s much-hyped world title fight between Floyd Mayweather and Saul Alvarez has split the betting public, with the big hitters staying loyal to the former and value seekers hoping his Mexican foe can upset the odds. Mayweather has been rated by many as the best pound-for-pound boxer on the planet for a number of years now and will be looking to extend his perfect pro record to 45-0 in Las Vegas. However, Alvarez, 13 years younger, will be expected to have a sizeable weight advantage by the time the opening bell rings.

Doping: Tests conducted at the Spanish athletics championships in July returned three “adverse ana-lytical findings”, the head of the country’s anti-doping agency (AEPSAD) said. AEPSAD pre-sident Ana Munoz did not reveal the names of the athletes but said their licences have been suspended while the correct procedures are followed.